Several ways of binding display pages together to form albums are known. Ring or spiral binders require a binding of suitable size to accommodate the number of pages required. Page clamping binders--including ordinary book bindings and the so-called "perfect binding" in which the pages are fused or glued together along one edge--have limited flexibility, and part of the sight area of each page is obscured in the fold of the binding. Bindings including a hinge for each page are also known, as are bindings having a hinge leaf secured to each page for being joined by hinge pins to the hinge leaves of the preceding and following pages. All of the binding devices described above have either the disadvantage of requiring loose hardware to bind the leaves together or the disadvantage of less than 180 degree rotation of each leaf about its hinge when opening and closing the album or turning its pages.
Another problem in the art is how to most economically form album pages and their associated binding, picture mounting, and hinge assemblies. Previously, most album pages have been assembled from one or more raw material sheets using relatively expensive sheet handling, folding, and joining apparatus. Binding hardware and picture mountings have been separately manufactured, using different machinery. Thus, a considerable capital investment has previously been required to manufacture and assemble the parts of an album, and album assemblers have had to keep an inventory of each required part on hand.